Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Think Quick - You're a Photog

As a news photog deadline approaches faster than a runaway train in a Hollywood Blockbuster and when you add a Live Shot to it you may as well fast forward to the end of the movie.

Our Live Shot Location was farther from the truck than I had extension cords (or time) to run, and my on camera light was convienently not with me in the live truck so in a flash of - WTF do I do now - I zip tied a handheld, battery powered, spotlight to the umbrella pole on my light kit.

Light in in a pinch

That whole mess started 4 hours earlier.

When water began spewing steadily out of the ground on a main thoroughfare today in Kernersville I was quickly dispatched to the scene.

I was less than a mile away...doing an interview at town hall with the Mayor about the passing of a former Mayor. My quick arrival made for an easy grab but as I disected the situation I determined I'd better get more than the obligatory 15 seconds of spray....no pun intended.

After about 20 minutes shooting every conceivable angle I made the call...and told the desk it would be a great nightside story....they could do 5 an 6 o'clock live shots during rush hour because it was only 2 and the roads were already backed up.

I stowed my gear and drove the footage back to the station. As I was loading that footage and the other 2 stories I had shot earlier I was given my next assigment. Drive the 20 minutes back to the watermain break with a reporter for 5 and 6.

With the traffic at a standstill and me sitting on the exit ramp at 4:52 I knew making the top of the 5 was a no go. But I didn't want it to be much later. I pulled from the right turn lane into the straight lane and passed all the traffic bottled up because there was only 1 lane feeding the rush hour beast today.

I made the right...right across the bows of cars coming from the right and the left....threading the livetruck into a space my Explorer shouldn't have fit.

I didn't look for any fingers...or listen for any horns...I had the parking lot nearest the gusher in sight. I set up the truck. Dialed the IFB. And we were on at 5.....12. First story in the B-Block.

Light

We did it again at 6....with my rigged up light kit. It was pretty flawless. The crews were just getting ready to get started digging. They had to work all night.